Felipe Massa said the difference in tyre compounds was "like driving two completely different cars" during practice for the Chinese Grand Prix.

With drivers struggling to reach double figures for a stint on the soft tyres Lewis Hamilton described the compound as "hardcore" and questioned whether it was the right choice for the Shanghai circuit. Having set the quickest time in FP2, Massa said the contrast between the two tyres was stark and that he actually struggled more on the mediums.

"Today, I immediately had a good feeling in the car and even if at the start I was not completely happy with the performance of the Medium compound and we were not as quick as our rivals, the times were good all the same," Massa said. "When I fitted the Softs, the car improved a lot and this meant I was able to set the fastest time of the day. It was impressive, like driving two completely different cars."

Massa was keen to clarify that he had no complaints about the high levels of degradation and is confident for the rest of the race weekend.

"Our race pace looks competitive, the car is handling well on both types of tyre and degradation was not excessive, even if the higher wear rate of the Soft compared to the Medium compound will be an important factor when it comes to choosing the right strategy. I feel confident and hope that the whole weekend can keep moving in this direction."